Anton Chekhov

Author profile

born

in Taganrog, Russian Federation

January 29, 1860

died

July 15, 1904

gender

male

genre

Theater, Short Stories

influences

Ivan Turgenev, Nikolai Gogol, Henrik Ibsen, Leo Tolstoy, Honoré de Bal ...more

About this author

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Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was born in the small seaport of Taganrog, southern Russia, the son of a grocer. Chekhov's grandfather was a serf, who had bought his own freedom and that of his three sons in 1841. He also taught himself to read and write.Yevgenia Morozov, Chekhov's mother, was the daughter of a cloth merchant.

"When I think back on my childhood," Chekhov recalled, "it all seems quite gloomy to me." His early years were shadowed by his father's tyranny, religious fanaticism, and long nights in the store, which was open from five in the morning till midnight. He attended a school for Greek boys in Taganrog (1867-68) and Taganrog grammar school (1868-79). The family was forced to move to Moskow following his father's bankruptcy. At the...more Anton Pavlovich Chekhov was born in the small seaport of Taganrog, southern Russia, the son of a grocer. Chekhov's grandfather was a serf, who had bought his own freedom and that of his three sons in 1841. He also taught himself to read and write.Yevgenia Morozov, Chekhov's mother, was the daughter of a cloth merchant.

"When I think back on my childhood," Chekhov recalled, "it all seems quite gloomy to me." His early years were shadowed by his father's tyranny, religious fanaticism, and long nights in the store, which was open from five in the morning till midnight. He attended a school for Greek boys in Taganrog (1867-68) and Taganrog grammar school (1868-79). The family was forced to move to Moskow following his father's bankruptcy. At the age of 16, Chekhov became independent and remained for some time alone in his native town, supporting himself through private tutoring.

In 1879 Chekhov entered the Moskow University Medical School. While in the school, he began to publish hundreds of comic short stories to support himself and his mother, sisters and brothers. His publisher at this period was Nicholas Leikin, owner of the St. Petersburg journal Oskolki (splinters). His subjects were silly social situations, marital problems, farcical encounters between husbands, wives, mistresses, and lovers, whims of young women, of whom Chekhov had not much knowledge – the author was was shy with women even after his marriage. His works appeared in St. Petersburg daily papers, Peterburskaia gazeta from 1885, and Novoe vremia from 1886.

Chekhov's first novel, Nenunzhaya pobeda (1882), set in Hungary, parodied the novels of the popular Hungarian writer Mór Jókai. As a politician Jókai was also mocked for his ideological optimism. By 1886 Chekhov had gained a wide fame as a writer. His second full-length novel, The Shooting Party, was translated into English in 1926. Agatha Christie used its characters and atmosphere in her mystery novel The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926).

Chekhov graduated in 1884, and practiced medicine until 1892. In 1886 Chekhov met H.S. Suvorin, who invited him to become a regular contributor for the St. Petersburg daily Novoe vremya. His friendship with Suvorin ended in 1898 because of his objections to the anti-Dreyfus campaingn conducted by paper. But during these years Chechov developed his concept of the dispassionate, non-judgemental author. He outlined his program in a letter to his brother Aleksandr: "1. Absence of lengthy verbiage of political-social-economic nature; 2. total objectivity; 3. truthful descriptions of persons and objects; 4. extreme brevity; 5. audacity and originality; flee the stereotype; 6. compassion."

Chekhov's fist book of stories (1886) was a success, and gradually he became a full-time writer. The author's refusal to join the ranks of social critics arose the wrath of liberal and radical intellitentsia and he was criticized for dealing with serious social and moral questions, but avoiding giving answers. However, he was defended by such leading writers as Leo Tolstoy and Nikolai Leskov. "I'm not a liberal, or a conservative, or a gradualist, or a monk, or an indifferentist. I should like to be a free artist and that's all..." Chekhov said in 1888.

The failure of his play The Wood Demon (1889) and problems with his novel made Chekhov to withdraw from literature for a period. In 1890 he travelled across Siberia to remote prison island, Sakhalin. There he conducted a detailed census of some 10,000 convicts and settlers condemned to live their lives on that harsh island. Chekhov hoped to use the results of his research for his doctoral dissertation. It is probable that hard conditions on the island also worsened his own physical condition. From this journey was born his famous travel book The Island: A Journey to Sakhalin (1893-94). Chekhov returned to Russia via Singa(less)

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Anton Chekhov's Books

Average rating: 4.00 · 68,880 ratings · 2,785 reviews · 926 distinct works · Similar authors

	Selected Stories by Anton Chekhov, Richard Pevear (Introduction, Translation), Larissa Volokhonsky (Translation) 4.33 of 5 stars 4.33 avg rating — 10,933 ratings — published 1900 — 37 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov, Tom Murphy (Translator) 3.64 of 5 stars 3.64 avg rating — 10,509 ratings — published 1903 — 120 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Seagull by Anton Chekhov, Michael Frayn (Translator) 3.89 of 5 stars 3.89 avg rating — 8,868 ratings — published 1895 — 155 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Three Sisters 3.76 of 5 stars 3.76 avg rating — 5,821 ratings — published 1900 — 85 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Uncle Vanya 3.81 of 5 stars 3.81 avg rating — 5,466 ratings — published 1897 — 138 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Complete Short Novels by Anton Chekhov, Richard Pevear (Translator), Larissa Volokhonsky (Translator) 4.45 of 5 stars 4.45 avg rating — 3,597 ratings — published 1993 — 6 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Ward No. 6 and Other Stories (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) by Anton Chekhov, David Plante (Editor), Constance Garnett (Translator) 4.31 of 5 stars 4.31 avg rating — 2,423 ratings — published 1892 — 54 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Five Plays: Ivanov / The Seagull / Uncle Vanya / The Three Sisters / The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov, Ronald Francis Hingley (Translator) 4.14 of 5 stars 4.14 avg rating — 2,413 ratings — published 1904 — 42 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Lady With the Little Dog and Other Stories, 1896-1904 by Anton Chekhov, Ronald Wilks (Translator), Paul Debreczney (Introduction) 4.08 of 5 stars 4.08 avg rating — 2,654 ratings — published 1899 — 90 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Anton Chekhov's Short Stories by Anton Chekhov, Ralph E. Matlaw (Editor) 4.33 of 5 stars 4.33 avg rating — 1,881 ratings — published 1932 — 39 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Anton Chekhov…

Quotes by Anton Chekhov

“Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.”
― Anton Chekhov

tags: broken-glass, glass, moon, moonshine, show-don-t-tell, writing

2,373 people liked it

“Any idiot can face a crisis; it's this day-to-day living that wears you out.”
― Anton Chekhov

tags: living

392 people liked it

“The role of the artist is to ask questions, not answer them.”
― Anton Chekhov

tags: art, artists

221 people liked it

See all Anton Chekhov's quotes »

Polls

The Best Fiction Author of All the Time

Leo Tolstoy

14 votes, 34.1%

Charles Dickens

12 votes, 29.3%

William Shakespeare

7 votes, 17.1%

Jane Austin

5 votes, 12.2%

Anton Chekhov

2 votes, 4.9%

Fyodor Dostoyevsky

1 vote, 2.4%

James Joyse

0 votes, 0.0%

Vladimir Nabokov

0 votes, 0.0%

Gustave Flaubert

0 votes, 0.0%

William Faulkner

0 votes, 0.0%

41 total votes

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Anton Chekhov

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